5 Fast Facts About Komodo Dragons

They can consume about 80 percent of their body weight in just one sitting and can swallow whole prey the size of a medium pig.

The dragon boasts an estimated 60 different strains of bacteria in its mouth that infect prey after its bite. Venom also adds to the Komodo dragon’s deadly bite cocktail.

The Komodo dragon is the world’s largest living lizard species. It can top out at nearly 10 feet long and averages 150 pounds.

Female Komodo dragons don’t necessarily need to breed with a male to lay a healthy clutch of eggs. Several captive female Komodo dragons have laid eggs and produced healthy offspring without mating with a male first. In the absence of a male, female Komodo dragons can develop an embryo from an unfertilized egg cell.

The Komodo dragon is named after Komodo Island in Indonesia, one of the five islands where this monitor lizard can be found.